Carol H. Williams is Inducted Into the American Advertising Federation’s Hall of Fame

Any advice for men and women of color who are in the ad industry or aspiring to be?

The ad industry is a problem-solving industry. And those problems appear every day, all day long in one form or another. So if you really aren’t challenged by that and in love with that, it’s very tough to make it.
Have self-awareness, know the importance of self-management and even social awareness. We have a lot of cultural cues that we have to be really aware of because some of them are compatible with corporate life and some of them are not.
Another key thing is relationship management. You have to have it between your bosses, your management team, your peers and yourself even more so than other jobs.
Emotional management is key. It’s very, very important to understand what emotional intelligence is. It is even more important than IQ.

What is the one thing you get most out of doing this job?

I love doing what I do, and I think when you love doing what you do, you just do it better than anybody else. The creative process is such an incredible process. I love going inside and being able to create something and then transition it into reality that then has a transformative effect on the people that it impacts.